Vareikas make gift of Farnum painting

Donation honors Cora Lee Gibbs

William (Bill) and Alison Vareika recently donated the American Impressionist painting, Drying the Fish, by H. Cyrus Farnum, to the Newport Art Museum in honor of Cora Lee Gibbs, who served as the Museum's director from 1985 to 1991 and currently sits on the Board of Trustees.

Bill and Alison have been generous friends of the Museum, volunteering their time in the past on the Board of Trustees and on various committees. They have been ardent supporters of our annual fundraising auction, "Wet Paint" both as buyers and as event sponsors through their gallery, William Vareika Fine Arts, Ltd

Originally from Glocester, Rhode Island, H. Cyrus Farnum studied at the Rhode Island School of Design and later at the Academie Julian in Paris with Paul Laurens and Benjamin Constant. The Royal Academy of Arts, London accepted one of Farnum's landscapes in 1896. He was a member of the Providence Art Club for many years. An accomplished painter, Farnum painted portraits and landscapes as well as Orientalist and genre scenes.